YouTube said we could fix the fact that we had a pallet under our porch step as another step due to some serious slope issues around here. 

And they were right!

But I'll never do that again. 

Step one.  Remove the sod because we had plans for that, which is a different story. 

Then you rent the red tractor to begin filling the hole. Most people would be digging down to build the patio foundation, but we had opposite problems as usual.  It was a concoction of YouTube videos really.

Tamp it all down. 

Tamp it all down again. 

Sprain your ankle after forgetting that you took out that last step in preparation for burying it. 

But you keep working because you took the week off, and there are things we've committed to now.

Then have two-days of morning freeze with a rain storm during the one week you took off  work to do this project. 

Then, have a whole bunch of gravel, and sand, and rip-rap (another story yet) delivered on the day you can't rent that red tractor again because the wheel is broke. 

So you hook the gorilla cart up to the John Deer and you get to work. 

And you form the patio in a 30 degree morning, so you can be working on gravel in relative warmth in the afternoon. 

Pause.  

Enjoy Easter. 

Find a tractor to rent no matter the size.

No fence was harmed in the performance of this project, amazingly. 

Put your son to work cutting the stones.

Because when I am in charge of stones, things go wrong. 

Work to the point that you no longer take pictures of anything because you just want to be done. 

 YouTube was right, but they shouldn't have said it was easy...